I have seen Inception twice now to try grasp the complexities of the plot. Leaving the cinema upon first viewing I was in shock and awe, the greatest film ever, or so I thought. I said that I wouldn't rate it until I saw it a second time and truly understood it. I left the cinema the second time and was no less deterred from it's apparent greatness. Through a series of unfortunate events I was left having to take a 3 hour walk on my own and, I regret to say, this is where it started unravelling.
This is somewhat uncharacteristic because I scold people all the time for being pedants, nit pickers and shit heads but what I'm going to do is list all of the inconsistencies and plot holes which I discovered. I have already ravaged forums, interviews and blogs looking for answers for my questions but couldn't find any. Now, you might call me a hypocrite but you can see that Nolan is obsessed with the "tick-tock logistics" and that is the subject of the film (as opposed to the philosophical substance of dreams.) I have no qualms with him choosing that approach but if I doesn't add up it shouldn't exist.
1. Mal and Cobb have been stuck in Limbo for 50 years, you have seen them when they're elderly so we know people age (as well as Saito) but when they're on the train track about to leave Limbo they are young. Why?
2. Why is Saito so old in Limbo? He wasn't there for that long...
3. To leave limbo you have to realise you are in a dream, Saito did this by a totem, Mal did this through Inception. Why didn't they go the more direct route of Limbo brining their totems with them, seems a lot easier then the synchronised kicks and the time limit.
4. What is Limbo exactly? Mal and Cobb weren't in a sedated state but got there anyway by going to dream from a dream from a dream so really they should have just been able to kill themselves to wake up, they weren't "stuck" there.
5. They said Limbo was "pure, infinite subconscious" AND "nothing." Which? Cobb said "you can't control your subconscious" but they were able to build buildings from it, just like an architect. It was established that's not how it works.
6. Things from the dream above have a direct effect on the dreams on the second level as shown by the gravity shifts. Another example would be when Fischer is being resuscitated lightning appears in Limbo. So why then, when 0 gravity takes hold of level 2 (Hotel) it doesn't then go to level 3 (snow)?
7. They missed the first kick, before the van hits the water. Everyone but Arthur misses it because they are in level 3, Arthur feels the kick but doesn't ride it. Why?
8. They missed the first kick which was all synchronised through music, how would they synchronise the second kick? They wouldn't have know the exact time it would have taken between bridge and water and then been able to work out what note that would have been in the music.
9. This isn't really a plot hole but... I don't really see my subconscious in my dreams being a bunch of milling people, I want my subconscious to be the driving force. Pah.
10. Another thing that isn't really a plot hole just a gripe. The debate about the ending, is it a dream or not? The children are wearing the exact same clothes, the top doesn't fall. On the other hand there is a strong implication that he remembers how he got there, the immigration control the VERY undream-like lighting. I just want to say that it isn't Nolan's job to give fodder for BOTH sides, he just presents something and WE argue over it. That's just wrong.
I might update this post because I know I haven't written everything. My problem isn't that it tries to be a puzzle, Memento was a puzzle and I loved it, but I doesn't amount to anything. There is no question as to what is reality and what isn't, at least the Matrix gave a good attempt, there is not even a mention to it until the last few seconds (and a few hints for second time viewing.) Memento was a puzzle but for one, it made sense and secondly it allowed the audience to feel what it's like to have short-term memory loss, or as close as possible. I'm going to flat out say that Inception has nothing in it that resembles dreams. I love you Nolan but Tim Burton should have made this movie not you.
Haha I'm so glad to finally hear this - you've restored my faith in humanity! I came out of that film thinking - what the fuck? How was that a Nolan film? I REALLY wanted to like it, I tried so hard to get into the action and everything, but in the end all it was was a pretty concept, that was never effectively explored (or explained for that matter). There wasn't any real character development, and most things didn't make much (if any) sense.
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion, inception was just a shell, a pretty shell, with lots of action and visuals, but when you try to bite into it all you get is a bloody gum-full of broken shards.